The Hanyou Pirate
by Pumpkin Maximus
Summary: Mikazuki is Shippo's older, half-demon sister, and when a trip through the Forest of Confusion separates them from Inuyasha and co. things just keep getting worse when Mikazuki is captured by the Straw Hat Pirates.
1. The Forest of Confusion

"Shippo! I told you not to eat those!" I yelled at the small fox demon, picking him up by the tail.

"Come on!" my little brother whined, still reaching for the patch of wild mushrooms we had come across, "just one bite! I'm starving!"

"No!" I said one last time and flicked him on the nose like a bad dog. Which reminded me. "I wish we could just find Inuyasha."

"Me, too," said Shippo, finally giving up on the wild mushrooms.

I let go of his tail and said, "Then he could just help us get out of here." I looked around at the huge forest we were trapped in, the Forest of Confusion. It was so chalk full of demons and different plant species that navigating by nose was impossible, even for a full demon like my brother. (Though he was still small he lacked nothing in the nose department.) I myself was a half-demon, his older half-sister. (We were related by our mother; after my father died she remarried Shippo's father.)

Anyway, this Forest of Confusion was so huge that you could walk in a straight line for days and not even reach the middle of it, not that you would want to get to the middle. That's where a great demon was said to live. It was said that, were he still alive, even Inuyasha's father, the great dog demon, would have trouble with this pest.

And this demon delighted in keeping other strong demons by his side, which accounted for the surplus of demons in this forest. And the closer you got to the middle, the stronger the demons got.

I just couldn't believe that me and Shippo had gotten stuck in a place like this. Shippo had run in, not knowing the dangers inside, I had run after him, and after quite a chase with much too many twists and turns for my taste, we had become hopelessly lost. Inuyasha and the others hadn't been with us when we had gotten lost, so they didn't know where we were or that we needed help.

"Ah! Zuki!" Shippo yelled, pulling me out of my depression. He was now cowering behind my legs pointing at a pair of glowing red eyes in front of us.

"A demon!" I tensed up and let the demon blood course through my veins. My nails sharpened, my dark orange hair grew long and wild, a low growl rose from the back of my throat. The snake slithered from the bushes, long white fangs glinting with venom.

It lunged at me first, like the mindless predator it was, and I quickly jumped above it to dodge. "Silver wind!" I shouted, and a gush of fast-flowing wind sprang from the spot in the air I had slashed, ripping the snake demon to shreds.

"Great job, Onee-chan!" Shippo shouted from behind me, running and jumping onto my shoulder.

"Thanks, but we're not out of the woods yet," I replied, looking around for any more demons. Luckily, we were all alone again. I looked up at the small gap in the trees that was throwing mid-morning light onto us. "Shippo, I've got an idea," I said. He looked at me, surprised and curious, but I just told him with that wild, adventurous smile he hated so much, "Hold on tight!"

Then I jumped straight up through the gap in the trees, falling back down to land on a branch looking over the forest from the tree's crown. "Now we can see where the heck we're going," I said proudly, searching the horizon for a break in the trees that would mark the end of the Forest of Confusion.

"There, Onee-chan!" Shippo said from my shoulder, pointing behind me, where I could just faintly see the blue glint of the ocean.

"Nice, Shippo!" I praised him, dashing off towards the glint of hope. Shippo was about to jump off my shoulder and start running through the trees by my side when something startled him. He yelped and clung to my neck. "What's the matter, Shippo?" I asked him, looking at his scared face beside mine. His pointed demon ear almost poked my eye out.

"Hurry, Onee-chan! There're more!" I looked down and saw what he meant. Two more snake demons similar to the one I had just killed, one blood-red and one deep blue, were slithering along below us, easily keeping our pace.

"Man, we just can't catch a break," I muttered angrily, pushing off the tree branches and crowns faster.

"They're speeding up!" Shippo warned.

"Right," I murmured, trying to push even harder than the maybe twenty miles per hour I was already going.

"Revengeee," I heard them hiss collectively from beneath us. "You killed our brother, ssshe-fox. Revenge for our fallen brotheeer." Just listening to their rasping voices was giving me the creeps. A shiver ran down my back.

"These two shouldn't be too hard to beat," I whispered to Shippo, just beginning to pant, "but once we get out in the open I need for you to hide yourself, Shippo. Those things will be easier to beat if they only have one target."

Shippo nodded. "Got it," he said, pulling out a leaf to prepare for a transformation spell that would camouflage him.

"Alright, Shippo," I said not a minute later as we neared the end of the Forest of Confusion. "Now!" He jumped off of my shoulder and down into the trees, close enough to still see the ocean easily. As he fell, he touched the leaf to his forehead and turned into a rock on the forest floor in a puff of smoke.

I smiled grimly and jumped off the last tree and out into the open, just as the snakes burst from the forest. There was about a hundred yard gap between the forest and the ocean, and I could see something a little father down from the corner of my eye. Before I could identify it, however, the first snake lunged.

"You insssignificant little foxsss!" it hissed, taking a snap at the spot I had been but moment before. The other joined it's brother.

"We'll ssslice you to bitsss for what you did to Nii-sssan." They both lunged at me from the front and I quickly dodged with a graceful backflip, landing on the blue one's head.

"Fox fire!" I shouted, holding out both hands to the beast's weak point at the back of the neck. A burst of smoke and green fire exploded from my hands, stunning the demon and knocking it unconscious. "Silver wind!" I yelled, slashing its head to bits.

"My brothersss!" the final snake, the red one, wailed. "I'll dessstroy you, puny half-demon!"

"I don't think so!" I countered, throwing a small idol between us. "Bear idol!" I shouted, and the idol grew in a puff of smoke, soon becoming a fearsome-looking bear at least ten feet tall. I knew that bear couldn't defeat this snake demon, and it wasn't meant to. It was just a distraction.

_And it worked_, I thought as the snake reared back and hissed. I took my chance and ran forward, jumping straight through the illusional bear and slicing the last snake with another "silver wind". I picked up my bear idol and put it back in my bag as Shippo began to emerge from the forest.

I held up a hand to tell him to wait, as I had just seen clearly what was docked on the beach. It was a pirate ship. Albeit, a small ship, but a pirate ship nonetheless, and pirates were never good news. I could see them walking towards me now, seven of them.

There were two black-haired boys, one with a straw hat and the other in with dark skin and a long nose, a blonde man with only his right eye showing and a cigarette sticking out of his mouth, a green-haired man with three swords, and a small reindeer in a pink hat and shorts walking on his hind legs. There were two women, one with black hair and the other with orange hair slightly lighter than my own.

I wasn't sure if this was the whole crew-it was a small ship, after all-but I wasn't about to let my guard down. These guys wouldn't go easy on kids like Shippo, but if I played it right I might be able to make them retreat without a fight.

"Sougoii! Zoro, did you see that? That was so cool!" That was the black-haired boy with the straw hat. For some reason, the first thought I got when looking at this boy was, _Somewhere a village is missing they're idiot_. He didn't look very smart, but definitely strong. Perfect.

"Yeah? What about it?" I called, standing tall and proud with my hands on my hips. I could see the blonde man doing some sort of noodle dance off in the corner saying, "Mellorine! Mellorine!" and I quickly came to the conclusion that he was no smarter than his friend, at least when women were involved.

The pirates stopped about five feet from me, and the hairs on the back of my neck began to stand up in fear. There were so many more of them than there were of me, and they all looked so tough. But I couldn't afford to get distracted now; I had Shippo to protect, and I wouldn't give up on him no matter what.

"That was so cool!" the straw hat continued, to me this time. "How did you do that?"

"I'm a demon," I said, showing pointed canines in a devilish smile. They all blinked, well, except the black-haired girl; she looked like she wasn't fazed easily.

"A-a demon?" asked the other black-haired boy, the one with the long nose, looking scared.

"Yeah, so you'd better get off my island before I get pissed." I smiled again, and the long-nosed boy, the reindeer, and the orange-haired girl all took a step back.

"But I want you to be on my pirate crew," said the straw hat, startling me.

"W-wait, what?" I asked, sure I had heard wrong.

"You're going to be my newest nakama on my pirate ship," the straw hat repeated.

"Don't I even get a choice? And no I'm not!" I yelled at him angrily.

"I'd just give up, if I were you," said the green-haired swordsman. "This guy's pretty persistent when it comes to nakama. He won't give up until you're on the ship."

"You shut up!" I said, pointing at him angrily. "I will not be ordered around by some... marimo-head!" I could almost see the vein popping out on his forehead, but I didn't care. Now I really was pissed.

"How can I get you to be my nakama?" asked the straw hat, annoying in his persistence.

"Fine, I'll be you're nakama _if_-" I said, holding up a finger "-you defeat me in battle." I pointed to his chest. "And your nakama can't help you." I smiled. Sure, this guy was dumb, but he couldn't be stupid enough to challenge a demon just to get me to-

"Sure."

I was caught off guard. "What?"

"Sure, I'll fight you. And if I win, you have to be my nakama." Now I was _really_ pissed. This guy thought he could beat me? A demon? Well, he had another thing coming.

"Silver wind!" I shouted, slashing at his face.

"Gumo Gumo no Pistol!" he shouted at the same time, and I saw his fist flying at my face before everything went black.


	2. Only Half Demon

I heard the voices before I opened my eyes. It was sort of a surreal feeling, like I was dreaming. The only problem with that theory was this: I didn't dream. Ever. "Luffy! You didn't have to knock the poor girl unconscious!" That was a woman's voice, angry and kind of nagging. If I had to place it to one of the two female pirates I had seen before, it would be the orange-haired one.

I recognized the straw hat boy's voice as the one that answered her. "Well, I beat her didn't I?" I almost scowled, but kept my cool, not wanting them to know that I was awake.

"A little too easily, don't you think?" I recognized that voice as well. It was Mr. Marimo Head. "Maybe she's not as tough as she says she is."

At that remark, I opened my eyes and sat up angrily. "Shut up, marimo!" I said angrily, gripping the edge of the cot on which they had placed me and staring straight at him murderously.

The marimo-head seemed unfazed but the black-haired boy with the weird nose and the reindeer with the hat both jumped in surprise and fear. We looked to be in a kitchen, with the blonde cooking, the reindeer steering the helm, and everyone else sitting at a wooden table.

I didn't have time to comprehend anything else before I heard a way too familiar voice and was glomped by a small creature. "Onee-chan! You're awake!" Shippo cried, jumping into my arms.

"Shippo!" I exclaimed, surprised to suddenly have a crying fox demon in my arms. "What are you doing here?"

"I was so scared!" he cried again. I was just about to ask him what he was doing on a pirate ship when I smelt something that shouldn't have been here. Wolf demon. As soon as the smell reached my nose, and eighth member of the pirate crew opened the door.

"What's all the noise? Is she finally awake?" Shippo quivered in my arms and a scowl deepened on my face as I looked at the female wolf demon. Us smaller demons, the foxes and such, were instinctively afraid of the wolves that preyed on us. Though I tried to hide my fear behind a mask of anger, the hairs on the back of my neck still rose.

The wolf demon came over and sat down right beside my cot, making me and Shippo scoot back into the wall. "Yo," she said, holding up one hand and sitting in and odd position with her legs pulled up to her chest.

"Yo?" I asked after staring at her blankly for a minute. "Yo? What the heck! Who are you?" I asked, confused by her unusual actions, my confusion turning into anger. She just smiled widely, further confusing me.

"I'm Ranko Isumi, wolf demon, at your service." She mock bowed and smiled wide again.

"And I'm Luffy! The pirate captain!" the straw hat interjected, smiling stupidly almost the same way as the wolf demon, Ranko. "That's Sanji," the captain, Luffy, said, pointing to the cooking blonde, then he began in introduce everyone. "That's Nami-" he pointed to the orange-haired girl "-Zoro-" the marimo swordsman "-Usopp-" the other black-haired boy "-Robin-" the black-haired woman, who was reading "-and Chopper." He last pointed to the reindeer who was steering the helm.

After all the introductions, me and Shippo just stared at him blankly as he continued to smile. Finally, I asked, "Why is my little brother on this ship?"

"Brother?" Luffy asked, confused.

Obviously, Zoro was more perceptive than his captain, as he said, "The kid followed you on. Luffy said it was okay so..." He trailed off, shrugging.

I thought this over for a second, Shippo still clinging fearfully but protectively to my neck, then I scooted off the edged of the cot saying, "Outta my way." I headed for the door that the she-wolf had come through, which I assumed led outside.

"We already left port," said the orange-haired girl, Nami.

"Too bad," I muttered, opening the door and stepping out into the late afternoon sun. The time surprised me. Had I really been unconscious for that long? And then I remembered what tonight was. "Crap. Shippo, I need you to do something for me," I told him, walking to the stern of the ship. I could hear the pirates scrambling out of the kitchen behind me, and I knew I had to act fast, before they heard me, especially the wolf demon.

"Shippo," I whispered to him, and he leaned in closer, "tell Inuyasha where I am and that I might need a little help with this one."

"But, Onee-chan, what about-" he began to object before I interrupted him.

"I'll be fine. Just hurry back and keep safe."

"But tonight is-"

"I know!" I snapped, angry at the sensitive subject. "Just go already!" I yelled, chucking him off the back of the ship towards the dim outline of green that was all that was left of our island. Shippo flew, screaming, over the waves for about twenty feet before he turned himself into a big pink ball and began to float away.

"I'll be back, Onee-chan!" he called as he quickly floated back to the island. I didn't give the pirates time to ask questions before I was through the hatch leading to the hull of the ship and into the storage area, hiding myself in the only empty barrel and closing the lid.

The sun was already going down outside, and I could feel my demon power slipping away, my claws turning to nails, my fangs turning to teeth, even the prickle in my scalp as my dark orange hair turned black. In but a moment, my human blood had diluted my demon blood enough to make me completely mortal, if only for the night.

I could hear the pirate captain above deck whining about me disappearing so quickly, and the she-wolf saying she would come talk to me. Like heck she would! I didn't want to talk to no prissy, stuck-up, wolf-stink-

"Fox-chan! Fox-chan, where are you?" I heard her calling, though I was sure she had already sniffed me out. I didn't answer her, just sat silent and sulking in my barrel. "There you are!" she said, throwing the lid off my barrel. She was smiling down at me, and I saw her eyes go wide as she saw the condition I was in.

The rest of the pirates also crowded around my barrel, all looking in and gasping. "How'd you change your hair color?" Luffy asked, and I would've face-palmed if i wasn't a mere human stuck in a barrel surrounded by pirates.

"She looks... human," said Nami cautiously. I couldn't stand it anymore. I jumped high up and out of the barrel, landing with my bare feet on the rim. I then flipped over the crowd and quickly ran out the door, though not as quickly as I was used to. Man, humans were slow.

I made it to the bow of the boat before a sword was thrown into my path. Unthinkingly, I stopped it with my claws, which were now my fingernails. "Shoot!" I said as the sword sliced my hand, dripping blood onto the deck. I looked down to see the marimo-head just now looking up at me. He looked as though he had been sleeping.

"Who are you?" he asked, not recognizing me in my human form. I ignored his question and ran to the ratlines-the ropes that connected to the mast-just as the rest of the crew began to emerge from the hull. I quickly climbed up the ratlines with my uninjured hand and into the crow's nest atop the mast, which was fortunately unoccupied.

I curled into a ball with my injured hand held tight to my stomach as the she-wolf peeped her head over the rim of the crow's nest. "Yo," she said, holding up her hand as she had the first time she said it.

"Oh, I give up," I said, knowing there was nowhere else for me to run on this small ship.

"I knew I smelt some human in you," said the she-wolf as the rest of the pirates finally peeked over the rim. I looked away from them as they all stared at me like some kind of experiment.

"What? What?" asked the captain, Luffy, sounding like an over-excited parrot. They all took in my obviously human appearance, and he finally got it.

"She's only half-demon," the she-wolf said.


End file.
